“I cook. That is my art,” says a homeowner who tailored her galley kitchen to make it a perfect fit.

Who's cooking: Abigail “Abbi” Power, chairman of the Irish Flat area at Night in Old San Antonio and the creator of the candied bacon, aka Blarney Bacon, that's sold at the booth. Professionally, Power does environmental work for a state agency.

What's cooking: At NIOSA time, Power and other volunteers will sweeten up more than 180 pounds of bacon over two weekends. “After you're through like 20 pounds, you don't ever want to see another pig,” she says.

From a family of good cooks, Power stepped into the kitchen on her own as a first-grader and whipped up a strawberry-filled layer cake for a school bake sale. By high school, she was planning meals and buying the ingredients to prepare them. Later, as a single mom, she switched from time-consuming baking that required precision to quick meals of nonprocessed foods she could prepare around her son's school and sports schedules.

Now that her son, Zane, is away at Georgia Tech, “I beg people to come over so I can cook for them.” Power hosts an annual chili party, and she likes to read recipes and improvise on them.

In this kitchen: Power is the third owner of the 1950s house in Northwood, which she bought in 1998. She redid the kitchen four years ago with the help of friend and contractor David Cody of Cody Enterprises.

The space: The galley measures about 8 by 171/2 feet.

On the surfaces: Power splurged on counters of Texas Pink granite, the same as the mottled pink and black stone used to build the state Capitol. The cool stone functions well for kneading her Irish soda bread.

Power almost passed on the pressed-tin backsplash because, after treating the metal to resist moisture and grease, it would have cost more than the granite. She found a look-alike product at a builder's store for a quarter of the cost. The metal-coated vinyl “gave me exactly the look I wanted,” Power says.

Cherry-stained Shaker-style cabinets show off the wood with simple elegance. “My dad had a passion for antiques and furniture making, so I've always had an appreciation for wood,” she says.

Walls are painted a deep teal shade that changes from blue to green, depending on light.

Why it works: Taking out a wall between the kitchen and living/dining area gave Power a bar and a view. “Because I do love to entertain and I do love to cook, I knew I wanted to be able to cook and talk to the people and see the dining table.”

The 41-inch-high bar counter, which she measures as “me-leaning-over-holding-a-beer tall,” suits her height. “This is a big people's kitchen,” she says, adding that she is 6 feet tall and her son is just shy of 6-foot-7. On the kitchen side, the counter, with a drawer beneath, functions as a desk and a place to sit on a stool and chop.

A built-in microwave frees up precious counter space, and the warming drawer on the gas range is a bonus when she's serving large groups. She enjoys the convenience of a slide-out spice rack in the lower cabinet adjacent to the range.

Know of a good cook with a great kitchen? Email suggestions for Cooks & Cocinas to Home & Garden Editor Tracy Hobson Lehmann, tlehmann@express-news.net.